Russia responds to the US-Ukraine joint military exercises in the Black Sea

Before the military exercises started on May 30, Russian Su-24 fighters had been several times spotted near American destroyer in the Black Sea, the Pentagon declared.

Russia responds to the US-Ukraine joint military exercises in the Black Sea.

The U.S. Department of Defense released the video showing the Russian plane flying in 500 meters from the U.S. Ross destroyer.

It is a rare occurrence that the U.S. Department of Defense releases such videos. The Pentagon did this "because we were unsatisfied with the press reporting, and we wanted to show exactly what happened".

Earlier Russian news agency RIA Novosti, with reference to its own source in the Black Sea fleet of the Russian Federation, reported that Russian fighters had forced the ship of the U.S. Navy to urgently head away to neutral waters. The agency also declared that the warship acted "aggressively" and "provocatively".

Pentagon spokesman Col. Steven Warren disproved information that the warship had changed its course. According to him, the Russian bombers weren't armed and posed no threat to the U.S. warship.

The Department of Defense also noted that the ship was "well within international waters at all times, performing routine operations". The destroyer did not "deviate from its mission" and made no contact during the encounter, the Pentagon said.

The Sixth Fleet of the United States Navy also declared that "the behavior of the crew was and remains professional".

The Russian Ministry of Defense didn't comment on a situation.

The Sixth Fleet of the USA declares that the purpose of warship presence in the Black Sea "is to reassure NATO allies and regional partners of the United States' commitment to working closely with them to enhance maritime security and stability in the region".

"Working with our partners in the Black Sea helps build greater regional awareness. Naval exercises with partners like Ukraine allow us to increase our joint capabilities and interoperability. As always, their [Ukrainian servicemen] conduct was very professional, and working with them today made our relationship stronger," Commanding officer Tadd Gorman said.

Ievgen Reznik, EMPR
Aleksandra Demskaya contributed to this publication, EMPR